Aaron Johnson – Sports Editor
NEW HAVEN — Southern Connecticut men’s basketball team has won five straight games and six of the last eight after defeating St. Anselm College 120-100 at the Moore Field House this past Tuesday night.
In a game where senior guard Luke Houston scored his thousandth career point, the Owls were lethal from behind the arc, shooting 68 percent from three. Houston finished the game with 22 points, six assists, and three rebounds.
Tylon Smith led the way for Southern, who improved to 13-3 [8-1 NE-10] on the season, with 32 points of his own to go along with six assists and five rebounds. Coach Mike Donnelly said seeing Smith and Houston playing together for four years has been a pleasure.
“It was a great night selfishly for me and coach [Makubika],” he said. “We recruited Tylon and Luke together to lead us in the backcourt. It’s just great for those two and all the work that they put in. I’m just really happy for the both of them.”
Southern shook off a shaky start to finish the first half on a 57-20 run to take a commanding lead and Owls never looked back. Donnelly said when the team is able to play defense at an elite level they are difficult to beat.
“When we’re clicking offensively it really starts on the defensive end,” he said. “The guys saw all the good things that we’re capable of doing when we click defensively and it carries over on offense.”
The Owls had five players in double figures, led by Smith and 27 points from sophomore guard Michael Mallory. Mallory was 10-14 from the field, including 7-7 from behind the arc. He said as the game progressed he was able to find his stroke and stay hot the entire evening.
“It was the rhythm of the game,” Mallory said. “We came out kind of slow so once we started picking it up. Once I saw Luke [Houston] hit a couple then Desmond [Williams] hit a couple I was like ‘I have to join the party.’”
But the night belonged to Houston. A native of Pearl River, N.Y., family and friends made the trip to New Haven for a chance to see the Owls’ co-captain achieve this career milestone. Just 15-points away coming into the contest, Houston finished with 15 points in the first half, including the three-pointer that gave him 1,000 for his career, the 27th player in program history to achieve the feat.
“I can’t even put it into words,” Houston said. “I’m so thankful that I got an opportunity to play here. I just want to thank my coaches, my family, and everyone that has supported me along the way. It’s always been a goal of mine. I never got it in high school so it’s really special for me.”
Southern was able to remain undefeated with junior forward Desmond Williams in the lineup. Williams, who recently came back after missing several games with a hip flexor injury, finished with 22 points on 9-12 shooting, two assists, and four rebounds.
“We’re 12-0 with a healthy Desmond,” Donnelly said. “He makes a big difference so that has given us a lot of confidence.”
Despite losing back-to-back home games for the first time since the 2011-12 season earlier in the year, Donnelly said the team has been able to refocus and has played at a high level ever since.
“I think the guys were humbled after losing back-to-back games at home,” he said. “They’ve been practicing hard, lifting weights hard, and I think they are starting to hit their stride.”
